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Go out to any comic book store in the world, pick one up, and something becomes immediately clear: it ain’t easy being a sidekick. It’s hard to think of any superhero who knows this better than Robin, Batman’s ‘Boy Wonder.’ And while the masses may have an image of a campy, somewhat oddly-dressed young boy permanently attached to the Dark Knight’s partner, Rocksteady Studios is looking to change all that. With Batman: Arkham City only weeks away, Tim Drake is set to reach all new levels of respectability, if everything goes according to plan....

When Bungie first revealed details for their upcoming Destiny update (1.0.3) most of the focus was on the addition of the Strike Team Chat feature, which allows matchmade teammates to communicate using an additional voice channel. What the developer didn’t tell us was that the update would also introduce some significant gameplay changes as well. Now that the update has gone live we know that this substantial update does more than just add Strike Team Chat....

At this point some might consider it torture to show even a second of Diablo 3 in action, but for those who just can’t stand the wait another minute, we’ve got good news. Access to Diablo 3’s beta may not be available to every single fan of Blizzard’s highly anticipated dungeon-crawler, but at least now we know what to expect. Footage and screenshots of the Beta layout, interfaces, character types and even a few gameplay screenshots have leaked online for the detail-starved masses....

The fans of Blizzard Entertainment properties are like a swarm of cultists, all wearing matching hoods and standing in a circle with torches. For the last several years, we’ve been chanting for the release of Cthu… sorry… I mean Diablo 3. The start of a long awaited closed beta recently has satiated Blizzard fans who are now breathing a collective sigh of relief that there now exists some tangible proof that the developer is still working on the game....

During its E3 2012 Press Conference, Microsoft unveiled the first footage of Forza Horizon, the upcoming Forza Motorsport spin-off developed by newcomer Playground Games. As you’d expect from any game with the Forza name, Horizon looks absolutely gorgeous. A number of screenshots have also been issued, and the game’s release date is now official: Forza Horizon launches October 23rd, 2012. The first details of Forza Horizon appeared last March, when a gameplay-free “tone trailer” popped up online....

Hard though it may be to believe, for some gamers, Batman: Arkham City just isn’t enough Batman. Sure, Rocksteady Studios’ latest is one of the best reviewed games of the year, but what comes next for players who long to roam the streets of Gotham City? Why, Gotham City Impostors, of course. Just today, publisher Warner Bros. Interactive revealed the game’s release date and announced an imminent open beta. Gotham City Impostors is Monolith’s take on a downloadable, team-based shooter, though the game’s bizarro visual style is unlikely to remind anyone of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive – much less Arkham City....

Fortunately, as seen above, Rockstar Games has introduced a brand new trailer for the multiplayer feature that may or may not hold people over until next year. Also, as it turns out, the heists are a four-player co-op mode, with one person as the leader and the other playing simple crew members. The player in the leader role is tasked with recruiting other players, assigning roles, picking appropriate heisting outfits and the like, while the other members just have to show up, do their job correctly, and make it to “each Heist’s epic finale....

When Monolith and Warner Bros. first unveiled Guardians of Middle-Earth few were quite sure what exactly the game was. Though it looked like a riff on the League of Legends or DOTA formula, the details were still relatively slim on what exact genre the game intended to deliver. After E3 2012, however, we now know that Guardians of Middle-Earth is being touted as a MOBA, or massive online battle arena. Players will take on a role as one of the game’s eponymous “guardians,” an iconic character from Tolkien’s rich universe, and do battle against opposing guardians....

There has been a lot of news surrounding Mass Effect 3 recently, not all of it positive. From the leaked demo, to the lack of local co-op support, to the possibility that BioWare will alter the game’s story due to the leak, Mass Effect 3 has seen its share of controversy in the past few weeks. Mass Effect fans need something positive now, something to look forward to. Enter the Mass Effect 3 N7 Collector’s Edition....

Great stories deserve great conclusions, and it’s seeming like fans of science fiction will be getting just that with Mass Effect 3. And although the game will undoubtedly be bringing the adventure of Commander Shepard to a close, that doesn’t mean DLC isn’t in store. BioWare’s Casey Hudson recently opened up on the studio’s plans for expanded content, and how it may not guarantee that Shepard will live to have another adventure at all....

Poor old Max never seems to catch a break – but that’s why we love his story. The launch trailer has been released for the third instalment in the captivating series, with plenty of in-game footage. However, as the series is known for its intensely cinematic style, it’s difficult to tell if there is gameplay footage mixed in, or if these are all cinematic sequences. At least one thing is for sure; Max Payne 3 is going to knock players’ socks off....

Electronic Art’s E3 2015 press conference may be scheduled for June 15, but that isn’t stopping the news from flowing with regards to one of the many games expected to appear at the event: Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst. The series, which only has one game under its belt so far, has been long overdue for a follow-up, with news surrounding the potential sequel popping up since 2012. It was only last year that EA and DICE officially announced a sequel to the parkour-heavy, first-person runner - at this point being labeled a reboot - but Mirror’s Edge 2 later went on to be mostly absent from last year’s E3 (despite a teaser), meaning the wait for any additional Mirror’s Edge news got slightly longer....

The CW has revealed its lead actors for the upcoming live-action remake of The Powerpuff Girls. Dove Cameron from Liv & Maddie, Chloe Bennet of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fame and Broadway actor Yana Perrault have been confirmed to star in the adaptation of the extremely popular Cartoon Network animated series. Created by Craig McCracken, The Powerpuff Girls follows the crime-fighting trio Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup. Made from “sugar, spice, and everything nice,” along with an accidental ingredient of Chemical X, the girls are born with superpowers and go up against the likes of Mojo Jojo and other evil villains in a mission to protect the Earth....

While Xbox One and PC gamers have been enjoying the mech vs. human combat of Titanfall for almost a month now, their Xbox 360 brethren are still a few days away from getting in on the action. However, even though many an Xbox 360 gamer is likely looking forward to the launch of Titanfall, they do so despite the surprising amount of secrecy that still surrounds the project. Thankfully, developer Bluepoint Games has come forward to clear up some of the confusion surrounding Titanfall on Xbox 360....

As much as we love the western interpretation of fantasy, with dragons, knights, wizards, and other medieval features, the aesthetic does get old after a while. Thanks to a number of creative game developers and talented graphic designers, there are a lot of alternatives out there when you get tired of the classic motifs. Science fiction aficionados have a lot to choose from in this category, making it possible for classic fantasy to get some real competition in the last couple of years....

Development of Kingdom Hearts 3 hasn’t exactly reached The Last Guardian status just yet, but it’s no secret that Square Enix has been taking its time with the next major step in the story of Sora, Donald and Goofy. Development was initially delayed because most developers from the Kingdom Hearts team were working on Final Fantasy Versus XIII (now known as Final Fantasy XV), but with that game finally making significant progress, Square was able to return to its Disney meets Final Fantasy mash up....

Gaming owes a debt to the Metal Gear Solid series. Each game represents the peak technological achievement for their respective console generation. Ironic, then, that the idea for a stealth action game came from the first entry’s technical limitations. Because the MSX home computer couldn’t handle many characters on screen at once, Hideo Kojima opted to design a game where avoiding enemy detection was key, rather than taking them head on....

Monster Hunter has always been a series not shy to let its goofy side show. The same is thankfully still true for this new entry. The Palicos alone are like the court jesters of the series while also being cute. It’s hard not to smile every time the Palico chefs make some fresh dango and dance around. There are also aspects of the game that can be laughed at through different perspectives aka memes....

Younger gamers might not even realize this, but Sega was once a major competitor in the console space. This came to an end with the Dreamcast. While not a bad console in any way, its sales just could not hold the company’s place in the console market so they changed to third-party publishing. Looking at the Dreamcast’s history reveals a bevy of fascinating information, including unique abilities other consoles did not even think of trying yet....

Pokemon is one of the longest-running and most popular animated shows, with many of its very first viewers watching well into their adulthood. Protagonist Ash Ketchum has finally reached a place where he can be independent and is willing to take on the world. As with anybody, his travels have had their ups and downs, but Ash made the courageous choice to take life head-on. Even though the fanbase may have grown into adults, Ash remains a child with his share of foibles....